Strategy And Operations Associate

Alaan; Dubai; Hybrid; AED 180,000 - 300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Travel allowances

Gym memberships

Equity

Competitive salary

Job summary

Alaan is seeking a Strategy & Operations Associate in Dubai to drive high-impact, cross-functional initiatives across Growth, Product, and Sales. You will turn ambiguous problems into clear action plans, own projects end-to-end, and deliver scalable operational improvements.

The role demands strong problem-solving, data fluency, and the ability to operate in a fast-paced, hybrid environment while collaborating with senior teams. Equity and competitive salary offered.

Qualifications

• Strong structured problem-solving skills with ability to turn ambiguity into clear actions.
• High ownership and bias for action; identify problems and drive solutions to completion.
• Proficient in analyzing large data sets; experience with SQL and BI tools is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead and execute cross-functional projects impacting growth and operations.
• Turn ambiguous problems into clear plans, owners, timelines, and measurable outcomes.
• Identify bottlenecks, root causes, and scalable solutions.
• Partner with Product, Sales, Customer Success, Growth to drive initiatives.
• Conduct analyses to provide data-driven clarity for decisions.
• Be a generalist who learns quickly and drives issues to resolution.
• Build dashboards, SOPs, and operating rhythms for effectiveness.

Skills

Structured problem-solving

Ownership

Data analysis

SQL

BI tools

Communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Tools

SQL

BI tools

Job description

Job Description

Aalaan is the Middle East's first AI-powered spend management platform, built to help businesses save time and money.

Our all-in-one solution combines smart corporate cards, real-time expense tracking, AI-powered automation, seamless accounting integrations, and deep financial insights- designed to simplify finance operations and maximize control over company spend.

Founded in 2022, Alaan is already the trusted partner of over 2000 leading businesses across the UAE and KSA, including G42, Careem, McDonald's, Tabby, Al Barari, Rove Hotels, Rivoli, and CarSwitch. Together, our customers have saved over AED 100 million with Alaan.

In just three years, Alaan has become the #1 expense management platform in the Middle East- and we've done it while becoming profitable.

Aalaan is also backed by Y Combinator and top global investors, including Peak XV (formerly Sequoia India & SEA), and built by a world-class team with experience from McKinsey, BCG, Goldman Sachs, Careem, Rippling, and other high-growth companies. This creates an environment where employees learn from top-tier talent while building at startup speed.

We're not just building software. We're reimagining how finance works for modern businesses across the region.

About The Role

We're looking for a thinker+builder Strategy & Operations Associate to take on some of the most important and often ambiguous projects within the Operations organization at Alaan. This is a role for a strategic generalist who is exceptional at execution. You could be improving a company-wide process, launching a new initiative, solving a cross-functional bottleneck, or building a system from scratch. You'll need to be comfortable moving between thinking strategically and executing meticulously, building relationships across the organization, and stepping into whatever problem needs solving.

What You'll Do

• Lead and execute high-impact, cross-functional projects impacting the company’s growth and operations.
• Take ambiguous problems and turn them into clear plans, workstreams, owners, timelines, and measurable outcomes.
• Identify operational bottlenecks and broken processes, get to the root cause, and build solutions that can scale.
• Partner with other functions, such as Product, Sales, Customer Success, Growth, to drive company-wide initiatives.
• Conduct analysis and research to bring data and clarity to complex business problems and support decision-making.
• Be a go-to generalist and problem-solver who can quickly step into unfamiliar areas, learn what's needed, and drive the problem to resolution.
• Build systems, dashboards, SOPs, and operating rhythms that make the Operations organization more effective and efficient.

What We Are Looking For

• 1-3 years of experience, ideally at McKinsey, BCG, or Bain, or tier 1 start-up.
• Strong structured problem-solving, with the ability to turn ambiguity into clear actions.
• High ownership and bias for action - you identify problems, propose solutions, and drive them to completion.
• A curious, first-principles thinker with excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Comfortable operating in a high-velocity, high-ambiguity environment where priorities can evolve quickly.
• Self-sufficient with large data sets using SQL; BI tools are a plus.

What's In It For You

• Contribute to building the Middle East’s most beloved fintech brand from the ground up
• Benefit from a role with significant ownership and accountability
• Thrive in a flexible hybrid culture with ample work-life balance
• Participate in exciting offsite events
• Competitive salary and equity
• Enjoy additional perks like travel allowances, gym memberships, and more

Job Details

• Role Level: Not Applicable
• Work Type: Full-Time
• Country: United Arab Emirates
• City: Dubai
• Company Website: https://bit.ly/getstartedwithAlaan
• Job Function: Strategy & Planning
• Company Industry/ Sector: Other